Portable poolside chair

ABSTRACT

A portable poolside chair for allowing at least one user to sit partially submerged in a pool is disclosed. The portable poolside chair comprises a water container having a top surface, a bottom surface, a front end wall, a rear end wall and a pair of opposing side walls, a tubular seat support frame structure comprising a bottom tubular frame member and two flanking tubular members, a back support having a front surface and a rear surface, and a seat member featuring a rotatable seat and a support element having a proximal end and a distal end; wherein the proximal end attached to a connecting member in the bottom tubular frame member and the distal end attached to a flange at a center portion of a bottom surface of the rotatable seat. The back support secured with the two flanking tubular members provides support to back of the user.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to poolside chairs, and more particularly to aportable poolside chair apparatus having a rotatable seat with a lazysusan mechanism.

DISCUSSION OF RELATED ART

Swimming is a popular recreational sport and the availability ofaccessories to permit a swimmer to rest in a comfortable sittingposition in a stable seat within a swimming pool has become increasinglydesirable especially for more elderly swimmers who desire to resttemporarily while still remaining in the swimming pool. The accessoriesinclude poolside chair, tables, floatation devices and lounge chairs.The pool side chairs are designed for offering personal recreation andrelaxation in homes, apartments, motels, water theme parks, clubs,resorts etc.

Various swimming pool side chairs have been devised for offeringpersonal recreation and relaxation to the user. One prior art device,taught in U.S. Pat. No. 4,837,869 to Simmon on Jun. 13, 1989 discloses achair supported on the coping and side of a swimming pool, spa or otheraquatic body. The chair is held by a support arm which rests on thesurface of the coping. The chair also has a leg which extends to theside of the swimming pool below the water line to hold the seat of thechair away from the side of the pool. Although portable, neither theseat nor the frame is adjustable for the user's orientation or comfortin the water. Thus the user is fixed in a position facing into the poolthereby restricting the enjoyment of refreshments or company on thedeck.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,307,527 to Schober on May 3, 1994 provides a pool chairadapted to be partially submerged in water in a swimming pool. Itincludes a frame having a seat and an upper cross member adapted to restalong the perimeter of the pool to hold the pool chair upright in thepool in a stationary position which enables a user to sit on the seatwith the user's lower torso and legs submerged in the water and theuser's head above the water. The chair is upright in the pool with theseat fixed in position facing the pool from between the tubular members.After approaching the seat, the user has to twist around fromapproaching the chair and move backwards into the seat. Like other fixedframe chairs, the user is forced to sit facing into the pool. Thestretched fabric seat is not comfortable to all persons. Also, thenarrow spacing between the tubular members limits movement and comfortof the user. Such a device cannot be folded into a small unit. Moreover,the device is not readily transportable and not easily storable.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,311,343 to Wisniewski on Nov. 6, 2001 describes aswimming pool lounge chair is provided for use in an above ground orin-ground swimming pool to provide stationary seating for the occupant.The swimming pool lounge chair has a reclining back portion,telescopically adjustable legs to rest on the bottom of the pool at theoption of the user, and a pool perimeter mounting portion that is alsotelescopically adjustable to permit the user to adjust his or her levelof submersion in the pool. The chair is collapsible, portable, and isnot permanently affixed to or within the swimming pool. However, theuser is still limited in motion within the arms of the seat so the useris again forced into a fixed position of facing the pool without accessto or viewing of the deck behind the user. Furthermore, the lowertelescoping portion is mechanically complicated. Another problem is thatthe legs slip on the pool floor as the user moves in the chair. Such aseat is not conducive to facing the deck to enjoy refreshments orcompany on the deck.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,637,045 to Larsen on Oct. 28, 2003 provides a portablepoolside chair apparatus for permitting a user to sit partiallysubmerged in a pool adjacent the pool wall. The portable poolside chairapparatus includes a plurality of frame sections. A pool deck portionthat is placed on the pool deck surface adjacent the pool wall and isdesigned to support the structure. A backrest portion that includesarmrests contacts the pool wall and supports the user's back. A seatportion is positioned at the lower end of the backrest portion protrudesoutwardly into the pool and is designed for supporting the user. Theaforementioned portions are pivotally coupled making the unit foldable.The backrest and seat portions each include a selectively couplablecushion member for comfort. Such a seat arrangement is not conducive toface the deck to enjoy refreshments or company on the deck. Furthermore,such a device does not include an accessory feature such as cup holders,thereby restricting the person residing within the chair enjoying theirfavorite beverage in order to enhance the pleasure while resting.

Therefore, there is a need for an improved poolside chair apparatus thatwould be reliable and foldable. Further, such a device would have aadaptable seating unit which provides the swimmer comfort seating andenjoy refreshments and company at the deck. Such an adaptable seatingunit would have a rotatable seat which may incorporate a lazy susanmechanism to make the chair suitable for sitting by facing anydirection. Moreover, such a portable and economical device would have awater container with accessory feature such as cup holder, so that aperson residing within the chair may enjoy their favorite beverage whileresting. The present invention accomplishes these objectives.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a portable poolside chair apparatus attachableto a poolside for allowing at least one user to sit partially submergedin a pool. The poolside chair apparatus comprises a water containerhaving a top surface, a bottom surface, a front end wall, a rear endwall and a pair of opposing side walls, a tubular seat support framestructure, a back support having a front surface and a rear surface anda seat member featuring a rotatable seat and a support element. Thetubular seat support frame structure includes a bottom tubular framemember and two flanking tubular members, each formed from a continuouslength of tubing. End portion of the two flanking tubular memberssubstantially extends from at least one terminal end of the front endwall to form side rails and the bottom tubular frame member extendstransversely to define a bottom rail. The back support secured with thetwo flanking tubular members provides support to back of the at leastone user.

A proximal end of the support element is attached to a connecting memberin the bottom tubular frame member and a distal end of the supportelement is attached to a flange at a center portion of a bottom surfaceof the rotatable seat. The water container may be designed forsupporting arms of the at least one user and may also include an openingon the top surface thereof to function as a cup holder. The bottomsurface of the water container adheres the poolside chair apparatus tothe poolside and the bottom surface may contain a resilient stop memberto allow the water container to grip the concrete thereby positioningthe poolside chair apparatus along the poolside for allowing the user tosit anywhere along the poolside. The water container may be filled withwater to weigh down the poolside chair apparatus thereby allowing theholding up of approximately 250-300 pound. The support element of theseat member may incorporate a lazy susan mechanism for facilitating therotation of the seat member. The water container that sits on thepoolside may be folded down against the rear surface of the back supportand the seat member may be folded up against the front surface of theback support thereby making the poolside chair apparatus portable and befolded up to fit compactly in a pool bag. At least one of the twoflanking tubular members of the tubular seat support frame structure mayserve as a handle to carry the poolside chair apparatus.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent from the following more detailed description, taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way ofexample, the principles of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a poolside chair apparatus in accordancewith a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side perspective view of the poolside chair apparatus in afolded position; and

FIG. 3 is a side view of the poolside chair apparatus of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment in accordancewith the present invention illustrating a poolside chair apparatus 10attachable to a poolside 60 for allowing at least one user (not shown)to sit partially submerged in a pool (not shown). The poolside chairapparatus 10 comprises a water container 12 having a top surface 14, abottom surface, a front end wall 16, a rear end wall and a pair ofopposing side walls 18, a tubular seat support frame structure 20, aback support 30 having a front surface 32 and a rear surface and a seatmember 40 featuring a rotatable seat 42 and a support element 44. Thetubular seat support frame structure 20 includes a bottom tubular framemember 22 and two flanking tubular members 24, each formed from acontinuous length of tubing. End portion of the two flanking tubularmembers (not shown) substantially extends from at least one terminal endof the front end wall 28 to form plurality of side rails and the bottomtubular frame member 22 extends transversely to form at least one bottomrail. The back support 30 secured with the two flanking tubular members24 may be made of mesh provides support to back of the at least one user(not shown). The water container 12 may be filled with water to weighdown the poolside chair apparatus 10 thereby allowing the holding up ofapproximately 250-300 pound. The water container 12 may also be designedfor supporting arms of the at least one user (not shown) and may alsoinclude an opening 62 on the top surface of the water container 14 tofunction as a cup holder.

FIG. 2 is a side perspective view of a poolside chair apparatus 10 in afolded position. The poolside chair apparatus 10 may be folded up to fitcompactly in a pool bag (not shown) and may be unfolded to put into thepool (not shown). A proximal end 46 is attached to a connecting member48 in the bottom tubular frame member 22 and the distal end 50 isattached to a flange 52 at a center portion of a bottom surface of therotatable seat 54. The bottom surface of the water container adheres thepoolside chair apparatus 10 to the poolside 60 and the bottom surfacemay contain a resilient stop member to allow the water container 12 togrip the concrete thereby positioning the poolside chair apparatus 10along the poolside 60 for allowing the user to sit anywhere along thepoolside 60. The support element of the seat member 44 may incorporate alazy susan mechanism for facilitating the rotation of the seat member 40which may be made of foam. The water container 12 that sits on thepoolside 60 may be folded down against the rear surface of the backsupport and the seat member 40 may be folded up against the frontsurface of the back support 30 thereby making the poolside chairapparatus 10 portable. FIG. 3 is a side view of the poolside chairapparatus 10 of FIG. 2. In order to be portable, the poolside chairapparatus 10 is designed to be less in weight. At least one of the twoflanking tubular members of the tubular seat support frame structure 24may serve as a handle to carry the poolside chair apparatus 10.

While a particular form of the invention has been illustrated anddescribed, it will be apparent that various modifications can be madewithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Forexample, various types of seating configurations and mechanisms may beincorporated to contemplate the apparatus defined in the art.Accordingly, it is not intended that the invention be limited, except asby the appended claims.

1. A portable poolside chair for allowing at least one user to sitpartially submerged in a pool, the poolside chair comprising: a watercontainer having a top surface, a bottom surface, a front end wall, arear end wall and a pair of opposing side walls; a tubular seat supportframe structure comprising a bottom tubular frame member and twoflanking tubular members, each formed from a continuous length of tubingwherein end portion of the two flanking tubular members beingsubstantially extending from at least one terminal end of the front endwall and the central tubular frame member extends transversely to form abottom rail; a back support having a front surface and a rear surface,the back support being secured with the two flanking tubular membersthereby providing support to back of the at least one user; and a seatmember featuring a rotatable seat and a support element having aproximal end and a distal end; wherein the proximal end being attachedto a connecting member in the bottom tubular frame member and the distalend attached to a flange at a center portion of a bottom surface of therotatable seat;
 2. The portable poolside chair of claim 1 wherein thewater container may function as an armrest.
 3. The portable poolsidechair of claim 1 wherein the water container may include an opening onthe top surface thereof to function as a cup holder.
 4. The portablepoolside chair of claim 1 wherein the water container may be filled withwater to weigh down the poolside chair.
 5. The portable poolside chairof claim 1 wherein the bottom surface of the water container may haveresilient stop member to allow the water container to grip concrete. 6.The portable poolside chair of claim 1 wherein the seat support framestructure may be made of mesh.
 7. The portable poolside chair of claim 1wherein the seat member may be made of foam.
 8. The portable poolsidechair of claim 1 wherein the water container may be folded down againstthe rear surface of the back support.
 9. The portable poolside chair ofclaim 1 wherein the seat member may be folded up against the frontsurface of the back support.
 10. The portable poolside chair of claim 1wherein the support element of the seat member may incorporate a lazysusan mechanism.